The Beatles Riding High
'Revolver' is widely considered either The Beatles best, or one of their best LPs; and many consider it the greatest, or one of the greatest Pop-Rock albums of all time.
I can't disagree with any of those statements, and 'Revolver' is an excellent, perhaps the PERFECT starting place for someone who is unfamiliar with the band. I started to title this review, 'The Essence of The Beatles', and in a way that rings true, but as broad as it is stylistically, 'Revolver' doesn't cover all the musical genres The Beatles are known for. For instance there's no Rock'n'roll or Rockabilly here, or heavy Rock, or Music Hall (although 'Good Day Sunshine' isn't far removed from it). The album consists of Pop, Rock (mainly of the 'Beat' variety), and Psych, with some strong Eastern influences on a couple of pieces.
I'll break it down for you (but only my favorites):
Taxman - One of George Harrison's best songs, with witty, sarcastic lyrics, nice vocal melody + harmony, biting rhythm guitar, cool lead guitar, pumpimg bass... the song is really driven.
I'm Only Sleeping - A languid but very pleasant John Lennon song about sleeping/dozing, with cool backwards guitar. No one but John could have written it, or sung it quite as well.
Love You To - Another great Harrison tune- inspired by Indian traditional music and featuring sitar, tabla, etc. Very well done.
Yellow Submarine - A fun, humorous Pop song sung by Ringo, geared for children large and small.
She Said, She Said - Beautiful guitars and vocals, pure Beatles magic.
And Your Bird Can Sing - Same as "She Said...", but a little more upbeat.
Dr. Robert - A great, driving Beat-Rocker with a very catchy melody and contrasting chorus.
I Want To Tell You - More great guitar sounds and typical but excellent Beatles melody and vocals.
Got To Get You Into My Life - Supposedly inspired by Motown, not a bad little song (but not top notch material for the band). Awash with horns, a simple but effective "pounding" guitar bit near the end clearly stamps it as Beatlesque and somehow makes it so much better.
Tomorrow Never Knows - The dark side of The Beatles... weird, ominous, nihilistic and somewhat psychedelic, brilliantly conceived and recorded. Puts you in a trance. You want to listen to it a thousand times (probably not a good idea, though it is tempting).
Unique, incomparable recording.Read full review
